Garden vegetables and fruits can produce much higher yields when they are allowed to reach the plants' maximum height. For example, tomatoes, cucumbers, pole beans, squashes and many other vegetables may grow up to heights exceeding 8-10 feet and, in turn, will produce fruit proportionally. Although support devices for garden vegetables are well known, current devices in the market do not provide the area to support plants to this height, nor can these devices typically accommodate multiple plants on the same support device. Many support devices in the market place are not taller than six feet and do not enable the user to adjust the height of the device according to the desired type of plant or specific individual plant and vegetable needs. In addition, current gardening support devices generally lack the structural strength to support plants exceeding five feet in height.
Frequently, support devices and garden trellises are made of wood and, in turn, are fastened to the ground using wood stakes. Although treated, these wooden support devices are not fully weather-proof and thus are often subject to rot and excessive wear or splitting over a period of time. Such rot is most often found near the lower end of the wood support or about the stakes due to constant exposure to ground moisture. As a result, such support devices will become out of line, tilt or even break due to winds and/or the weight of the plants.
For many years, people have been growing vegetables in outdoor gardens at the front, side and rear yards of their homes. A persistent problem with garden vegetables is that the plants take up a substantial amount of outdoor space. Such space requirements are inconvenient and prevent those living in areas with limited yard space from enjoying their own home-grown vegetables. Further, the failure to maximize the growth potential in a limited outdoor garden results in a reduced yield of vegetables.
Another difficulty with the growing of vegetables is that, as the plants grow up and outward, there is the possibility that plants will limit the exposure of sunlight to leaves and stems growing below. This is especially true where numerous different vegetables are placed in the same garden area, each growing at a different rate and competing for maximum exposure to daily available sunlight. Thus, there is a need in the marketplace for a device which allows various plants of different sizes to achieve maximum exposure to available sunlight without extensive use of gardening space.
In order to be successful, vegetable gardens must be kept free from insects and small animal pests. Considerable time and expense must be incurred using pesticides and other means to maintain a healthy garden free from the damaging effects of insects and small animal pests. The risk of insects and pest damage is even greater when trying to grow plants which produce vegetables on or close to the ground. Such a position of the vegetables provides easier access for the many non-flying insects and land borne animals which feed on plants and vegetables. Further, even with proper care, plant and vegetable damage from such pests may occur at any time during the plants' life. Therefore, there is always a need in the home gardening industry for new and inventive methods for decreasing the risk of plant damage, especially without the use of environmentally harmful pesticides and animal repellents.
In addition to the risk of insects and small animal pests, significant time and expense must be expended to keep a vegetable garden free of weeds. Many back breaking hours may be spent throughout the growing season picking weeds that continuously plague a garden. Failure to regularly maintain a garden free of weeds will decrease the health and productivity of the plants. Weed growth within the garden may also increase the chance of insect infection. The greater the size of the garden, typically the greater the area of soil which must be continually weeded, both manually and with pesticides, in order to maximize plant growth.
Therefore, there is a need in the market place for a durable, space efficient, adjustable support device that enables a user to grow various forms of vegetables, while in turn decreasing the time and expense to keep a garden healthy, but yet maximizing available sunlight and producing optimum yield within a reduced area.